Edible Flowers: From Garden to Palate [Paperback]

Cathy Wilkinson Barash (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 7, 1995

Now in paperback, this nationally acclaimed gardening guide and cookbook showcases 280 recipes--including some from chefs at top restaurants in the U.S. and Canada--that use edible flowers. Edible Flowers also provides growing information for 67 flowering plants, with one chapter devoted to the 10 most popular edible flowers.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Barash ( Evening Gardens ), a gardener, a writer and a photographer, here offers a more than generous anthology of ideas for bringing together flowers and foods at the table. The book is not recipes only. Barash also includes information about the etymological history of plant names, the plants' growing habits, how to cultivate them, identify them in the wild and gather them for eventual use in the kitchen. She makes an admirable effort to provide inventive and appealing offerings: "Candied Pea Blossoms on Salmon Toast Points," for example, lays 20 pea flowers on an array of toast slices; clover finds its way into biscuits and pickles; lavender goes into soup, chutney, cookies, ice creams and fish dishes. It may seem fanciful to consider adding lilac blossoms to yogurt, then downing it, but she convinces, and sometimes entrances, with floral crossovers. And wisely, the author includes a list of poisonous plants and flowers, along with a generous bibliography. Photos not seen by PW.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Library Journal

Edible flowers have become a trendy ingredient on restaurant menus over the past few years, but, as Barash points out, many cultures have been cooking with flowers for centuries. In her unique and informative guide, she offers 250 recipes that use both unusual and exotic flowers as well as blossoms from arugula, mint, and other plants more commonly associated with the kitchen. For each, she provides history and lore along with a few paragraphs of gardening advice, accompanied by color photographs for identification. The sophisticated recipes include contributions from restaurant chefs as well as Barash's own creations. Highly recommended.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 264 pages
• Publisher: Fulcrum Publishing (April 7, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 155591246X
• ISBN-13: 978-1555912468
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 8.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,398,482 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Cathy Wilkinson Barash was born on Long Island, New York in 1949 and spent much of her life there. She is a life-long organic gardener. From childhood she has held firm a belief in economy of space and time in the garden mainly by planting edibles among ornamentals, "so many fruits, vegetables, and herbs are beautiful themselves"--instead of relegating them to the back 40. Anne Raver of The New York Times was the first to call her a "gourmet horticulturist," as she practices edible landscaping--specializing in edible flowers--and is a gourmet cook.

A freelance photographer, writer, designer, and professional speaker, Cathy is best known as the author of "Edible Flowers from Garden to Palate," which Martha Stewart described as "very excellent." Published in 1993, "Edible Flowers" was nominated for a Julia Child Cookbook Award and garnered an Award of Excellence from the Garden Writers Association.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

34 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best book of edible flower recipies, November 10, 1999

By 

Angel Lee "Liocorno Amethyst Moonstone" (Cleveland, OH United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Edible Flowers: From Garden to Palate (Paperback)

This is the best book of edible flower recipes I have found. It is packed with delicious recipes using over 60 different flowers. Conveniently, about half are accompanied by small color photos of the dish.

The book starts out with essential information on cooking with flowers including preserving & drying them. General recipes such as flower butter, honey, sugar, syrup & jelly for each flower follow.

There are also facts on each flower including the scientific name, a brief history, physical characteristics, description of flavor & ideal growing conditions. Great basic information on organic gardening in included as well.

Most of the recipes I've tried, including soups, salads, desserts, drinks & main dishes have been easy to make. My favorite is the herb & flower cheese terrine. It makes a tasty & impressive party appetizer.

23 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Great frosting.... no cake!!!, August 30, 2001

By 

Doug Huberman (Los Angeles, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Edible Flowers: From Garden to Palate (Paperback)

"Edible Flowers from Garden to Palate" is a feel good book written for people who are already experts on the subject. How else can you explain that less than 1/3 of one page of this 250 page book is dedicated to "What part of the Flower to Eat" and much of that paltry 16 lines of text is either confusing or inconsistent with other key portions of the book? Although there are specific warnings about flower parts including stamens, styles, pistils and sepals -- there are not any pictures or diagrams illustrating what they look like on the various flower types or how best to remove them. Infact, they are not even listed in the index! Even within these three short paragraphs Ms. Barash apparently contradicts herself. At the bottom of paragraph 1 she states "Remove the sepals of all flowers except violas, Johnny Jump-ups and pansies." Then at the bottom of paragraph 2 she states, "Others, including Johnny jump-ups, violets, runner bean, honeysuckle and clover can be eaten in their entirety." Does "eaten in their entirety" include the sepal or the stamens, the styles and the pistils? For that matter, why is the term pistil used in The Ten Rules of Edible Flowers and not refered to in the section on what parts of the flower are edible? Furthermore, Ms. Barash appears to consistently violate her own "rules". For example, prior to the Introduction she lists The Ten Rules of Edible Flowers which includes number 7, "Remove pistils and stamens from flowers before eating. Eat only the petals." Then on page 231 she states, "If they are on the plate, they should be edible." Both seem like good consistent advise until you read the sections on the individual plants. Page 17 shows a whole Calendula on a plate. Is all of it edible? Page 28 shows a whole Daylily on a plate. Is all of it edible? Page 43 shows a whole nasturtian on a plate. Page 59 shows a whole stem of sage including leaves and flowers on a plate. Page 75 shows a whole stem of anise hyssop including leaves and flowers on a pizza. This raises the question, which flowers do you really have to follow the rules and only eat the petals? A rule is not a rule if almost everything is an exception. This seeming lack of consistency is continued throughout the book. On page 173 both the recipe and the photo call for a whole pineapple guava flower. Is all of the flower edible? Even the dreaded stamens, styles, pistils, and sepals? Which rule if any is being violated by these examples, rule 7 or the prohibiltion on page 231?
Unfortunately, readers who don't already know the answers to these questions will have to find the answers from another source. From my perspective, this book is yet another example of a very disturbing trend in books and magazines related to organic gardeing. It seems at an ever increasing rate that "essential facts" are being replaced by glossy paper and beautiful photos. Why authors and publishers seem to think the two are mutually exclusive is beyond me.

5.0 out of 5 stars Fun flower cookbook, February 6, 2010

By 

C. Bailey - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Edible Flowers: From Garden to Palate (Hardcover)

Lots of great ideas for the serious plant nerd. Fairly comprehensive collection of edible flowers complete with appropriate warnings. Many of the recipes have a southeast Asian twist to them.